The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that mandates the sale or ban of TikTok, rejecting an appeal from the app’s owners, who argued the ban infringed on the First Amendment. Under the law, TikTok’s Chinese parent company must sell its U.S. operations by Sunday, or face a ban. The court’s decision, issued without individual justices’ signatures, indicated unanimous support for the ruling.
Biden administration’s national security concerns fuel the decision
The ruling comes after the Biden administration raised alarms about the app’s potential national security risks due to its connections with China. As a result, the ban is set to take effect by Sunday. However, there are still uncertainties surrounding how the ban will be executed, given that no major social media platform has ever been blocked by the U.S. government before. The details of enforcement remain unclear at this point
In its opinion, the Supreme Court acknowledged that for 170 million Americans, TikTok offers “a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community.”
However, the top court stated that Congress was primarily focused on national security concerns, which, according to the court, played a key role in its decision-making process in the case.
“Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary,” the court wrote, as per a report by CNN.